Portable conveyors are used for conveying bulk material such as sand, gravel, concrete, and the like. The typical portable conveyor includes an endless conveyor that is located at an inclined angle and the bulk material is fed to the lower end of the inclined conveyor and is discharged from the upper end to a location of use.
In the conventional portable conveyor, the conveyor belt is driven by a power source such as a gasoline engine, or an electric or hydraulic motor, that is operably connected to the conveyor drive roll at the lower end of the conveyor frame. The engine is fixed in position relative to the conveyor and projects upwardly above the lower end of the conveyor belt. With the engine located in this position, it restricts feeding of material to the conveyor, in that it is difficult to feed concrete or other bulk material over the engine onto the conveyor.
As a further disadvantage, the engine for the conventional portable conveyor cannot readily be removed from the conveyor. A period of about 30 to 40 minutes is normally required for removal of the engine. Because of the difficulty in removing the engine from the conveyor, the engine is usually maintained on the conveyor when the conveyor is stored overnight or for weekends at a construction site. As a result, the engines are frequently stolen. To prevent theft, the conveyor is often suspended in an above-ground position by a crane during downtime or storage periods, if a crane or hoist is available at the construction site.
A further problem arises during transporting of the conveyor. The conveyor is normally transported on a ladder rack mounted on the top of a truck and the conveyor engine is normally located at the rear of the truck. As the engine has a substantial weight, the conveyor must be cantilevered forward to balance the weight As the typical conveyor may be 25 to 30 feet in length, shifting the conveyor forwardly on the truck to balance the weight can exceed the 5 foot overhang limit for legal conveyance. Because of this, it would be desirable to be able to readily remove the engine from the conveyor during transporting.
In the typical portable conveyor, the engine is mounted in fixed relation to the conveyor frame. In certain instances it would be of advantage to move the engine relative to the conveyor to provide greater access for feeding the concrete or bulk material to the conveyor, or in discharging the material from the conveyor.